Him se yldesta andswarode; werodes wisa, wordhord onleac.
"That noblest of men answered him; the leader of the warrior band unlocked his wordhoard."

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Nolan Hatcher, RIP

Though the Wordhoard is generally exclusively for medieval content, I could not let this go unremarked.

Nolan Hatcher, a retired professor from Troy University, passed away yesterday. He was the kind of man we should strive to be: philanthropist, scholar, pillar of the community.

I first met Dr. Hatcher my first year here at Troy, about a decade-and-a-half after his "retirement." For Dr. Hatcher, retirement simply meant he wasn't teaching courses any more. He continued to be involved with the University, particularly international students. Even though most have never heard of him, every international student at Troy University owes Dr. Hatcher a debt of gratitude. It was he who made certain that community leaders were connected with the international students, sometimes by giving int'l student leaders a venue at the Rotary Club to talk about their experiences here, and sometimes by prodding local business leaders into supporting the students in their fundraising.

I don't know if I could tell you the name of another Troy professor who retired 20 years ago, but Nolan Hatcher I knew. He understood that being a professor was an avocation as well as a vocation. I admired him, and our community is diminished by his loss even as we are inspired by his example.